Chip Reese

David “Chip” Reese is one of those players that would qualify as a legend even if he was still around. Chris Ferguson and Phil Ivey are two who fit that description. Unfortunately for the poker world, Reese died at a relatively young age, after establishing himself as one of the masters in the poker world.

He was just 56 when he passed away quietly at home, after winning about $3 million in live tournament play and taking home three World Series of Poker bracelets. He is the youngest player to be inducted in the Poker Hall of Fame.

Money Man

Reese was widely known as a cash game player yet he finished in the WSOP money 17 times in his career. He lived in Las Vegas later in life but was a product of the Midwest (Ohio) and the east coast. He attended Dartmouth College and was so skilled in poker there that the card room in his fraternity house is named the David E. Reese Memorial Card Room!

Chip Reese was recognized by his peers as a master of Seven-Card Stud. This reputation was so strong that none other than living legend Doyle Brunson asked Reese to write the Stud chapter in the Super System book that has become a staple in the poker libraries around the world. Brunson considered Reese a friend and called him one of the two best young poker players in the world.

Young Gun

Reese became such a force in professional poker that he was inducted into the Hall of Fame in 1991 – at the age of 40! His WSOP titles include the $1,000 Seven Card Study bracelet in 1978, the $5,000 Limit Seven Card Stud bracelet in 1982 and the HORSE ($50,000) title in 2006, for which he won $1.78 million.

His death was something of a surprise. Though he had complained of symptoms resembling pneumonia he didn’t seek medical help. Reese died in his sleep at his home in Las Vegas. Brunson remembered that Reese was one of the most even-tempered people he ever knew. After learning of Reese’s death, Brunson said the younger man was “certainly the best poker player that ever lived.”

Reese was successful enough at Dartmouth College to earn acceptance into the Stanford Business School. However, he tried the poker scene in Las Vegas at the age of 22 and never looked back. The poker world lost a true legend in Chip Reese.